Lupita Nyong’o celebrated her body at the 2023 Tony Awards. The actress graced the Sunday, June 11, red carpet in a metallic breastplate.
The eye-catching piece was designed by Misha Japanwala and featured a realistic molding of the 40-year-old Black Panther star’s chest. Nyong’o paired the top with a tailored black blazer and high-waisted trousers with a flared hem.
The Mexico City native opened up about the style statement via Instagram, calling the ensemble a “shameless out-of-body experience.”
“Honored, humbled, strengthened and energized to don this breastplate created by @MishaJapanwala, which she cast and molded of my body,” Nyong’o captioned a carousel of photos that showed off her look. She continued: “Misha Japanwala is a Pakistani artist and fashion designer, whose work is rooted in the rejection and deconstruction of external shame attached to one’s body.”
“In her artistic process, she creates a realistic and true record of a person’s body as an act of resistance and celebration, and an insistence on being allowed to exist freely in our bodies,” Nyong’o wrote. “[Japanwala] writes, ‘The word beghairat (translation: shameless) has become an anchor in my practice; thousands of people have used it to describe me and the work I create, in an effort to insult and shame me into silence. In reclaiming the word and understanding that the rejection of others’ narrow definitions of shame is one of the most powerful tools for liberation, I’ve come to deeply appreciate and respect what living a life of shamelessness truly means. My craft pertains to documenting our existence in the most truthful way I possibly can — I change nothing about the body and how it looks. I think that act of surrendering and allowing our bodies to simply be, is such a beautiful and powerful thing.”
Nyong’o went on to praise Japanwala for helping her practice self-love. “Misha, thank you for this special opportunity to BE EXACTLY HERE, IN THIS BODY NOW.”
This wasn’t the first time the Little Monsters actress intertwined fashion and art.
Last month, Nyong’o covered her newly shaved head with henna to attend the opening of Monsoon Wedding Musical, which follows two Indian families as they come together for a wedding. The Black Panther: Wakanda Forever star took to Instagram on May 16, revealing that she wanted to honor South Asian customs.
“The story of my head,” Nyong’o wrote via Instagram alongside a series of photos and videos that showed her with the intricate ink, which was brought to life by tattooist Sabeen. “I met @hennbysabeen last year at a wedding in Pakistan. She did the #hennadesign for the bride and I was ASTOUNDED by the INTRICACY and BEAUTY of her work. There was something unique about the way she expressed herself in henna art. And I promised myself, ‘One day, I will have a reason to work with Sabeen.’”
Nyong’o later reached out to Sabeen and the two came up with the idea to decorate her crown like a canvas. “The moral of the story is: DARE YOURSELF TO SEEK OUT BEAUTY IN NEW WAYS,” the 355 actress added.
